EAST LANSING, Mich. – Despite a late third-period push, the No. 1 Wisconsin men's hockey team dropped a series for the first time this season after falling 3-2 at No. 11 Michigan State on Saturday.
Wisconsin (9-3-0, 4-2-0 Big Ten) skated into the final frame tied 1-1 after graduate student forward Owen Lindmark scored his second goal of the weekend, but Michigan State's (10-3-1, 5-0-1 Big Ten) two third-period goals gave the Spartans the edge. The Badgers fought until the end, adding a goal from sophomore defenseman Ben Dexheimer with a minute left in the game, but it wasn't enough as they fell to the Spartans, 3-2.
Michigan State struck first eight minutes into the first period on a shot from Jeremy Davidson.
The game remained quiet until Wisconsin found the back of the net with just over a minute left in the second period. Junior defenseman Daniel Laatsch passed from the right side of MSU's blue line to find senior defenseman Anthony Kehrer at the top of the left circle. Kehrer took a slap shot which Owen Lindmark redirected past Spartan goaltender Trey Augustine.
The Spartans regained their lead two minutes into the third period after Joey Larson sent a shot past the left pad of goaltender
Kyle McClellan.
MSU's Nash Nienhuis gave the Spartans a two-goal advantage with 3:17 remaining in the final frame.
Wisconsin continued to battle, with
Ben Dexheimer adding his first career goal to make it 3-2 with 1:03 left in the contest, but that was as close as the Badgers got.
UW finished with a 30-28 shot advantage, with senior goaltender
Kyle McClellan stopping 25 shots. UW went 0-for-5 on the power play, a key in the game, while it killed the one power play it faced.
Notes to know:
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Owen Lindmark scored his sixth goal of the year tonight, tying his career-high set during his freshman year in 2019-20.
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Ben Dexheimer's third-period tally marks his first career NCAA goal
- The Badgers continue to outscore their opponents 16-7 in third periods
Up Next: The Badgers return to Madison and begin a three-week homestand with a series against Alaska Anchorage on Friday and Saturday, Nov. 25-26. Puck drop for Friday's game is set for 7 p.m. while Saturday's contest will begin at 6 p.m. Both games are available to stream live on B1G+ while audio play-by-play will be available on the Badgers app and The Varsity Network App. You can also follow along on X/Twitter and Instagram @BadgerMHockey.
